Blade of Fire by Stuart Hill

Blood, gore, insides spilling across the ground. Men screaming in pain as they are chopped down like trees in a forest. Every warrior of the Icemark dreams of death, bloodshed, and earning glory for his family and fellow warriors. That is the dream of Charlemagne, the crown prince of the Icemark. But when Charlemagne gets sick, as a young boy, that dream starts to slip through his fingers.Years later, when he is forced into exile because of a raging war in his country Charlemagne will have to choose whether to save his friend or saving his country and family. Who will he chose?

The Blade of Fire follows Charlemagne who must overcome challenges he faces as goes through his hero’s journey. When his beloved country falls under siege of the Peloponnesian empire, Charlemagne is the Icemarks only hope. Charlemagne must raise an army and come to their aid, but will he get back in time to save the Icemark? As Charlemagne fights to save his country, little does he know someone has been plotting his death since the day he was born. Now sharpen your swords and don your armor we ride to war and to the aid of the Icemark. Blood, Blast and Fire.

In this book, I was most impressed with was how Stuart Hill made his mythical characters come alive with his choice of words. Stuart Hill put so much detail and emotions into the characters that at some points in the book you feel yourself become one with the characters. For example,when Thirrin says goodbye to Charlemagne, she is so sad ,but at the same time the uprising war makes her very angry. Because she is forced to say goodbye to her favorite son and she knows she might never see him again, the reader can relate to Thrinn through for the loss of a family member she holds dearly. However one thing I wish Stuart Hill did differently was give some description and details of the Ice Troll war”.” Although he gives some description of why Medea goes evil, I wish he put more details like why she hates her brother so much and what makes her long for the darkness.

This book is a page turner because of the suspense Hill builds. An example of this is shown through one of his sisters who is not what she seems. The dark whispers her name. It beckons her, wrapping around her like a cocoon of evil power.

If you love adventure mixed with war and love and broken hearts then this is your book. Now it’s up to you to decide your fate and chose which paths you will to take.

Subscribe

Get Teen Ink’s 48-page monthly print edition. Written by teens since 1989.